Cobham, Surrey
Cobham | ||
---|---|---|
Shire county | ||
Region | ||
Country | England | |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom | |
Post town | Cobham | |
Postcode district | KT11 | |
Dialling code | 01932 | |
Police | Surrey | |
Fire | Surrey | |
Ambulance | South East Coast | |
Esher and Walton | ||
Cobham (
Toponymy
Cobham appears in Domesday Book of 1086 as Covenham and in 13th century copies of earlier charters as Coveham. It is recorded as Cobbeham and Cobeham in the 15th century and the first use of the modern spelling "Cobham" is from 1570.[4] The name is thought to derive from an Anglo-Saxon landowner either as Cofa's hām or Cofa's hamm. The second part of the name may have originated from the Old English hām meaning a settlement or enclosure,[5] or from hamm meaning land close to water.[6][7]
The area of the village known as Cobham Tilt, is first recorded as la Tilthe in 1328. The name is thought to derive from the Old English Tilthe, meaning "cultivated land".[8]
History
Cobham is an ancient settlement whose origins can be traced back on the ground through
Cobham appears in
Historically, Cobham other than outlying farms comprised two developed areas, Street Cobham and Church Cobham. The former lay on the Portsmouth-London Road, and the building now known as the Cobham Exchange was once a coaching inn. The latter grew up around St Andrew's Church, which dates from the 12th century. Although much altered and extended in the 19th century, the church preserves a Norman tower and is a Grade I listed building (the highest architectural category).[10][11]
In 1649, the Diggers established a new community at Little Heath following their expulsion from nearby St George's Hill, Weybridge. The community met some success, with 11 acres (4.5 ha) cultivated, six houses built, winter crops harvested, and several pamphlets published. The local lord, of the manor, Parson John Platt, despite initial sympathy, rallied gangs to attack the community and prevent locals in assisting them. Platt and local landowners drove the community out in April 1650. [12]
The village's population was reported as 1617 inhabitants in 1848.[13] The arrival of the railway in the 1880s led to the expansion of the original village, the eastern fields and southern areas towards the railway station becoming suburbanised during the 20th century. A 1960s improvements scheme widened the entrance to the High Street from River Hill to the south which was very narrow, removing a few historic and picturesque buildings, replacing some with less ornate brickwork glass-fronted buildings suitable as shops. Subsequently, the High Street has developed into a local shopping centre.
Aviation and motor industries
Cobham is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) from Brooklands and played host to associated and its own aviation and motoring activity in the 20th century. Leading motor engineer and car designers Reid Railton and Noel Macklin set up a manufacturing facility, building Railton road cars at the Fairmile Works from 1933 to 1940. An example is displayed at Brooklands Museum in the same borough.
In World War II, after a major aircraft factory, Vickers-Armstrongs, at Brooklands was bombed by the Luftwaffe on 4 September 1940, with heavy loss of life and many more injured, the Vickers Experimental Department was quickly dispersed to secret premises on the Silvermere and Foxwarren Park estates along Redhill Road. Engineer and inventor Barnes Wallis also carried out important trials catapulting models of his 'Upkeep' bouncing bomb across Silvermere Lake around 1942 and conducted spinning trials with larger prototypes at 'Depot W46' (the largest of the three dispersed sites). Vickers had numerous other wartime dispersed depots locally and those within the boundaries or whose nearest village was Cobham included Corbie Wood and Riseholme (on Seven Hills Road), Conway Cottage and Norwood Farm.
Despite its proximity to Brooklands and Wisley airfields (both active until the early 1970s), Cobham saw relatively few aircraft crashes. Most notable was a Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter which flew low over Brooklands apparently in trouble and crashed at Cobham on 16 March 1944; the pilot survived and little else was published of this incident.
During World War II aircraft company
After the war, Vickers' Experimental Department continued to use two of the Redhill Road sites (now known as 'Foxwarren') and built aircraft prototypes there such as the Viscount airliner and Valiant V-bomber, until it moved back to the main factory at Brooklands in the late 1950s.
In the 1970s residents Mike Chambers ran a business building Huron Formula Fords and a Formula Atlantic car at the Silvermere works and Geoff Uren prepared the BMW team saloon cars and Graham Hill's Jägermeister-sponsored Formula 2 car.
From 1972 to 2011 Cobham Bus Museum occupied an ex-aircraft hangar (used mainly by Vickers-Armstrongs as a machine shop) next to Silvermere golf course in Redhill Road. The bus museum reopened as the
Geography
Boundaries
Cobham fits into a triangle between the River Mole to the south, the
Other
- Soil
The village neighbourhoods of Downside (south) and Fairmile (east). The longstanding built-up areas resemble the adjacent fertile east banks of the Mole such as at landscape garden Painshill Park on free-draining gravel topped with layers of alluvium. This contrasts with the steep west bank, acidic sandy heath, which underlies the highest land on all the outskirts, residual outcrops of the Bagshot Sands (Formation). These isolate Cobham village historically, Esher Commons, Oxshott Heath and Woods and the Redhill Common part of Ockham and Wisley Commons.[16]
- Elevation
Watershed points, or in international terms drainage divides, are at the summits of the sides of the lower Mole Valley, attaining 60 metres (200 ft) and 65 metres (213 ft) towards the east close to Oxshott and Stoke D'Abernon respectively.
The
- Demography
Cobham used to have two
Landmarks
At the heart of Cobham is the Church Cobham Conservation Area, which was designated in 1973 and includes fourteen statutory listed buildings. Amongst these are Pyports, once the home of
The
Two other large houses on the outskirts of Cobham have been taken over by schools: Heywood is now the American Community School, and Burwood House is now Notre Dame School.[27][28]
The Chelsea F.C. training ground is also nearby.
Cobham Mill
The
During World War II, a Canadian tank collided with the main building, causing much damage.[31]
In 1953 the main part of the mill was demolished by Surrey County Council to alleviate traffic congestion on Mill Road. This left just the grist mill standing.
In 1973 the Cobham Conservation Group was formed, later to become the Cobham Conservation and Heritage Trust, and one of its main objectives was to rescue the much deteriorated grist mill building from sliding into the river as a result of water erosion of the mill island. In 1986 the freehold of the mill was taken over by the
Thereafter, the Cobham Mill Preservation Trust was formed as a sister organisation to the Cobham Conservation Group and took over the leasehold. The building was restored to full working order by the volunteers of the Cobham Mill Preservation Trust, and first opened to the public in 1993. Cobham Mill is now open to the public from 2 pm to 5 pm on the second Sunday of each month between April and October, inclusive.[32]
Education
St Andrew's Primary School[33] is located in the village as is Cobham Free School which is an all-through school.[34] A local prep school is Feltonfleet School. There are three independent schools: Notre Dame; ACS (The American Community Schools) Cobham International and Reed's School.[35]
Local leisure and entertainment
Walton Firs Activity Centre lies just off the A3 in Cobham and covers 28 acres. It takes its name from Colonel Walton, who dealt with the purchase of the site in 1939.
Politics
Parliament and Local
The
Cobham has many old buildings, conservation areas and housing development pressures. It has a very active Heritage Trust,.Since a by election in July 2021, the Liberal Democrats have taken 2 out of the 3 Cobham seats on Elmbridge B.C.
Since the 2013 Surrey County election, the local Member for Cobham is Conservative, Mrs Mary Lewis who serves as Cabinet member for Children, Young People and Families. A Cobham & Downside member on Elmbridge, Mike Bennison since 2005 also represents the next 3 stops up the line to London Oxshott Claygate and Hinchley Wood on Surrey County Council.
British Army
Following the formation of the
Road and rail links
To the north and west of the village is the A3 trunk road, a major arterial route from London to Portsmouth. This road links to the M25 motorway at Junction 10, immediately to the southwest of Cobham.
- The A307, Portsmouth Road starts in Cobham and runs northwards to the adjoining town of Esher. This is also known as the "old A3".
- The A245 runs through the centre of the town and leads to Leatherhead in the south-east and Byfleetto the west.
Police and fire services
The closest public desk and offices of Surrey Police is at the Civic Offices, Elmbridge Borough Council, in Esher.
- Surrey Fire & Rescue Service, called Painshill Fire Station, has a full-time crew together with:
- 1 Water Tender Ladder
- 1 Incident Command Unit
- 1 Forward Command Vehicle
Notable people
- John Addison, (1920–1998), composer, was born in Cobham.[47]
- Matthew Arnold, (1822–1888), poet, lived in Cobham from 1873 to 1888.[48]
- Malcolm Arbuthnot, (1877–1967), pictorialist, photographer and artist, was born in Cobham.[49]
- Sir Felix Aylmer, (1889–1979), actor, lived at Painshill House, Cobham in the 1970s.[50]
- Antonio Banderas (born 1960), Spanish actor, lives in Cobham[51]
- General Sir Thomas Brotherton, (1785–1868), died nearby and is buried in St. Andrew's churchyard.[52]
- Harvey Christian Combe, (1752–1818), brewer, Lord Mayor of London, owner of Cobham Park
- Aaron Eckhart, (born 1968), American actor, lived in Cobham and attended the American Community School.[53]
- Shane Filan, (born 1979), singer, former member of Westlife, has homes in Cobham and Sligo, Ireland.
- Kit Hain, (born 1956), singer and songwriter, was born in Cobham
- better source needed]
- Nick Jones, (born 1963), entrepreneur, owner of Babington House and husband of Kirsty Young, grew up in Cobham.
- Nicholas Lane, (c.1585–1644), cartographer, came from a Cobham family and his earliest surviving work, 1613, is of Painshill.[55][56]
- John Ligonier, 1st Earl Ligonier, (1680–1770), Commander-in-Chief of the British Army, lived at Cobham Park.[11]
- Vernon Lushington, (1832–1912), lawyer and patron to the arts, lived at Pyports in Cobham.[57]
- Sir (Albert) Noel Campbell Macklin (1886–1946), of Fairmile estate, a British car maker and boat designer.
- Kenneth McAlpine (1920–2023), racing driver, was born in Cobham.[58]
- Nichola McAuliffe (born 1955), television and stage actress and writer, was born in Cobham.
- Admiral Sir Graham Moore, (1764–1843), naval officer, lived at Brook Farm in Cobham[11] and is buried in St. Andrew's churchyard.[59]
- General Lord Henry Percy VC KCB, (1817–1877), soldier and MP, was born at Burwood House (now Notre Dame School).[60]
- Sopwith Aviation, H G Hawker Engineering, Hawker Aircraft and Hawker Siddeley aircraft companies, lived at Compton House, Cobham in the 1920s.[61]
- Fred Stedman, (1870–1918), Surrey county cricketer, was born in Cobham.[62]
- Gerrard Winstanley, (1609–1676), reformer, lived in Cobham from 1643 and was churchwarden in 1667–1668.[63]
- Louis Cole, British film-maker and YouTube personality.
- Mudar Zahran, Jordanian politician and Secretary General of the Jordanian Opposition Coalition.
- Sue Biggs CBE, director general of the Royal Horticultural Society.[64]
Demography and housing
Output area | Detached | Semi-detached | Terraced | Flats and apartments | Caravans/temporary/mobile homes | Shared between households[1] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cobham Fairmile (ward) | 792 | 366 | 274 | 262 | 1 | 2 |
Centre and south[n 1] | 1,157 | 687 | 401 | 507 | 4 | 2 |
The average level of accommodation in the region composed of detached houses was 28%, the average that was apartments was 22.6%.
Output area | Population | Households | % Owned outright | % Owned with a loan | hectares[1] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cobham Fairmile (ward) | 4,751 | 1,697 | 34 | 32 | 553 |
Centre and south | 4,988 | 2,047 | 40 | 31 | 276 |
The proportion of households in the settlement who owned their home outright compares to the regional average of 35.1%. The proportion who owned their home with a loan compares to the regional average of 32.5%. The remaining % is made up of rented dwellings (plus a negligible % of households living rent-free).
In film, fiction and the media
The Cobham News & Mail covered local news in the latter part of the 20th century until it closed and was incorporated into the Surrey Advertiser.[65] Cobham is also covered by the Elmbridge Guardian, the Surrey Herald and the Surrey Comet newspapers.
Nearest places
- Stoke D'Abernon
- Oxshott
- Esher
- Leatherhead
- Hersham
- Weybridge
- Walton-on-Thames
- Effingham
- Byfleet
- East Horsley
- West Horsley
- Downside
Notes
- ^ Cobham and Downside (ward) less Elmbridge 017C
References
- ^ United Kingdom Census 2011 Office for National StatisticsRetrieved 21 November 2013
- Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
- ^ Grid Reference Finder distance tools
- ^ Gover, Mawer & Stenton 1969, p. 87
- ^ Mills 2003, p. 124
- ^ Taylor 2003, p. 1
- ^ "Cobham, Surrey". Key to English Place-names. University of Nottingham. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
- ^ Gover, Mawer & Stenton 1969, p. 89
- ^ "Doomsday Sudrie (Surry)". Surrey Domesday Book. Archived from the original on 23 December 2004. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "St. Andrew's Church". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ a b c "Victoria County History". British History Online. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ "Little Heath – Surrey Diggers Trail". www.diggerstrail.org.uk. Archived from the original on 13 August 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
- ^ "A Topological Dictionary of England".
- ISBN 1-870979-38-9.
- ISBN 1-85310-093-5.
- ^ "Soilscapes soil types viewer – National Soil Resources Institute. Cranfield University". landis.org.uk.
- Ordnance surveywebsite Retrieved 2013-10-13
- ^ Cobham Conservation & Heritage Trust (Improvements at River Hill, Cobham) Flood Risk Assessment Archived 16 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine Bell Fischer Retrieved 2013-10-13
- ^ "Census data – Area: Cobham Fairmile (Ward) – Key Figures for 2001 Census". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Census data – Area: Cobham and Downside (Ward) – Key Figures for 2001 Census". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Pyports". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ "Church Stile House". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ "Ham Manor". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ "Cedar House". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ "Cobham Park". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ "Painshill House". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ "Heywood". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ "Notre Dame School". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ Historic England. "Cobham Mill (1190885)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ "Cobham Mill". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ Cobham Mill – A Brief History, Cobham Mill Preservation Trust, https://www.cobhammill.org.uk/history-of-the-mill/
- ^ "Cobham Mill – Home". cobhammill.org.uk.
- ^ "Welcome to St Andrew's Primary School". St Andrew’s Primary School. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Home".
- ^ "Home-Whats on-news". Reed's School. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Welcome to Cobham Rugby". Cobham Rugby Club. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Cobham Players-presenting plays since 1948". cobhamplayers.org.uk. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "History". Walton Firs. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
- ^ "Dominic Raab". Dominic Raab. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Ward Members". Elmbridge Borough Council. Archived from the original on 23 December 2010. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Ward Members". Elmbridge Borough Council. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Latest news". Cobham Conservative and Heritage Trust. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Welcome to the CDRA". Coham and Downside Residents Association. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "News and events". Elmsbridge residents group. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Welcome to Esher and Walton Lib Dems' website". Libdems.org. Archived from the original on 24 April 2006. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- )
- ^ Gleason, Alexander (12 December 1998). "John Addison". The Independent. London. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ "Matthew Arnold". Representative Poetry Online. Archived from the original on 11 January 2012. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ "Malcolm Arbuthnot". kittybrewster.com. Archived from the original on 25 August 2006. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - . Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ "Why Antonio Banderas ditched Hollywood for Cobham". London: Sky News. 9 August 2019. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
- ^ "Thomas William Brotherton". Esher District Local History Society. Archived from the original on 22 January 2012. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ Bedell, Geraldine (4 April 2004). "Mormon becomes electric". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ "Harold B. Hudson". theaerodrome.com. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ Gunasena, Diana (September 1982). "Nicholas Lane, Seventeenth Century Land Surveyor and Cartographer". The Wandsworth Historian (34). Wandsworth Historical Society: 1–8.
- ^ Gunasena, Diana (Spring 2007). "The Nicholas Lane Family Dynasty". The Wandsworth Historian (84). Wandsworth Historical Society: 1–5.
- ^ "Vernon Lushington". cobhamvillage.co.uk. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ Williams, Richard (20 April 2023). "Kenneth McAlpine". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- ^ "Moore Tomb". britishlistedbuildings. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900. .
- ^ Gwyther, Matthew (15 July 2000). "Sir Thomas Sopwith". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 9 April 2013. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
- ^ "Fred Stedman". CricketArchive. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ "Gerrard Winstanley". The Digger Archives. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ Maxine Boersma (1 July 2016). "RHS Head: 'Why Britain faces a horticultural timebomb'". The Guardian.
- ^ "Esher and Elmbridge". Cobham News & Mail. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
Bibliography
- Boot, Roy (1990). From Spitfire to Eurofighter: 45 years of combat aircraft design. Shrewsbury: AirLife Publishing. ISBN 978-1-85-310093-2.
- Gover, J.E.B.; Mawer, A.; Stenton, F.M. (1969). The place-names of Surrey. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Mills, A.D. (2003). Oxford Dictionary of British Place Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-852758-9.
- Sedgwick, Michael; Gillies, Mark (1989). A-Z of Cars of the 1930s. Devon: Bay View Books. ISBN 978-1-87-097938-2.
- Taylor, David C. (2003). Cobham: A history. Chichester: Philimore. ISBN 978-1-86-077247-4.
- Westlake, Ray (2011). The Territorials : 1908–1914: A guide for military and family historians. Barnsley: Pen and Sword. OCLC 780443267.
External links
- Aerial photographs of Cobham
- Cobham Conservation and Heritage Trust
- Cobham Mill Preservation Trust
- Surrey County Council. "Cobham". Exploring Surrey's Past. Retrieved 31 May 2017.